Crankless mechanism



Mmm@ A G. M. MHCHELL CRANKLES S MECHANI SM Filed Sept. 22, 1924 2 Sheets-Sham 1 A. G; M. MHCHEILL CRANKLESS MECHANISM Filed Sep?, 22 1924 ga ma /w ma mw w@ No roo en aaoliy AJM bbw.

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d Patented Jan. 1927.

'UNITED STATES YPrrarrr OFFICE.

ANTHONY GEORGE MALEON MICHELE, or MELBOURNE, VICTORIA, AUSTRALIA, AssI'GNon :ro cnANxLEss ENGINEsYLmrrED, or MELBOURNE, Ansmann.

' cRANxLEssuE'cHANIsM.

' HEISSUED Application led September 22, 1924, Serial No. 739,110, and in Australia October 15, 1923.

The present invention relates to swashplate mechanism which ma be of the slipper and slant type described 1n my Australian Patent 4627 of 1917, such mechanism comprising a slant having a plane face oblique to the shaft, (3o-operating with reciprocating pistons in such manner that the latter reciprocate with a pure harmonic motion.

The object of the present invention is to rovide a swash-plate mechanism comprislng two swash-plates revolving relatively to multiple istons arranged in pairs, the two pistons O each pair being in d1fferent phases of reciprocating motion in the manner and for the purpose hereinafter set out.

1n the accompanying drawings, swashplate mechanism accordmg to this invention is shown in diagrammatic form, being illustrated by wa of example, as applied to an internal com ustion engine operating on a two stroke cycle.

Figure 1 is a longitudinal section, in outline, of such an engine, while Figure 2 is a phase-diagram showing the relative positions of the piston elements at different phases of the cycle of Operation.

It is to be understood that a complete` engine will usually be arranged as above stated with multip e pistons, that is to ,say

will com rise a plurality of pairs of pistons such as t at shown in Figure 1. The swashplates 1, 2, revolving with the shaft 3, and mounted thereon in approximately opposite phases, will operate in conjunction with all of said pairs of pistons. The swash-plates 1, 2, are respectively in Operative relation with the main pistons 4 and 5 which reciprocate in the explosion cylinder 6. in approximate opposition to each other. These pistons 4, 5 form one of the pairs of pistons referred to above as char- `acteristic of the construction. As shown in Figure 1, the piston 5 being at the extreme end of its stroke, the piston 4 will have nearly, but not completely reached the correspondng end of its stroke, that is to say its maximum distance from the piston 5. The cylinder 6 has at its ends two series of ports 7, 8, which are uncovered by the ends of the pistons 4 and-5, as the latter reach the outer ends of their respective strokes. At the opposite or inner ends of the strokes the pistons 4, 5 reach the positions shown by dotted lines 4, 5, respectively near the` 5 middle of the length of the cylinder 6.

in the descriptionbelow that the fuel is gaseous, induction taking place from the source of supply through the valve 15 into the cylinder 14, and delivery therefrom through the automatic valve 16 into the fuel receiver 17, and thence at the appropriate phase of the cycle into the workin cylinder 6 through the valve 18 operated y the cam 19 on the shaft 3. A modification suitable for adapting the cylinder 14 of a multiple-piston engine to operate on the Diesel-engine cycle,

with liquid fuel, -will be indicated herein-l after. Admission of the scavenging air to cylinder 13 may be through a port 20 communicating with the atmosphere through port 21 on the rotary valve 22 on the shaft 3 at the appropriate period of the cycle and delivery of the scavenging air takes place through the port 23I which communicates through the conduit 24 with the ports 7.

The sequence of operations of the system is set out in the diagram, Figure 2, which represents thej events of one 'revolution of the shaft 3. The sinusoidal curves C4. C5, in this diagram represent respectively the displacements of the main pistons 4, 5, shown in Figure 1, the line O, O, corresponding to the middle line of the cylinder 6, represented by the same symbols in Figure 1. Thus the vertical distance between the two curves 4, 5, at any7 instant of the revolution represents the total volume of the working fluid in the cylinder 6 at that instant. Itwill be observed as shown in the drawings that the displacement of piston 4 is later in phase than that of the piston 5, by an angle corresponding to the supplement of the angle by which the swash-plate 1 is mounted on the shaft to the rear of the swash-plate 2, namely, as shown in the diagram Figure 2, by an angle of 30 degrees.

The vertical line I, I in Figure ,2, corre-` sponds to the phase of the revolution whenI the moving parts of the engine are in the respective positions in which they are i'epresented in Fi ure 1. Thus as a consequence ofthe awash-p ate 1 being laterin phase than the swash-plate`2, and of the ports 7 being of smaller axial len th than theports 8, the

scavenging ports-` areiat this stage only on the point o bein uncovered by the end of the\piston 4, whi e the exhaust ports 8 are fully open having been uncovered at an earlier phase by the end of the piston V5.- It will be understood that by suitable selectionl of the axial dimensions of the ports 7 and 8, and by relatively slight ,variations of. their axial positions relatively to the strokes of the pistons 4 and 5, substantially the same operative effects may be secured, with a pair of slants exactly, instead of approximately, opposed in phase; also that, in order to render the engine adaptable todifferent varieties of fuel lor to varying conditions of operations, means may be provided for adjusting the hase -of either of the slants relativelyto t e other and to. the valves. The pressure of the combustion in the cylinder 6 being this in- -stant reduced nearly to atmospheric pressure, and the scavenging piston 11 performing its compression stroke, the scavenging air Awill displace and expel the remaining ses upon t e opening of the scavenge ports gli At the hase 11 the exhaust ports 8 are closed b the piston 5 returning over them and at t e same time or shortly afterwards scavenge ports 7 are similarly closed by the piston 4. After the closing of the scavenge ports the compression in the cylinder 6 proceeds bythe return of the pistons 4 and 5' towards the middle plane O, O, but the air enclosed in the cylinder'13 expands down to or slightly below atmospheric pressure at the openin of the induction port 20 at the phase IV, V. 4

The remainder of the cycle in the'cylinder 13 is shown in Figure 2 b the dotted sinusoidal curve C, 13, whic is opposite in phase to C, 4, together withy lines A andA A", which represent vrespectively the travel of the leading and following ed of the port 21 of the rotary valve 22, with respect to the induction ort 20 whose relative osition is indicate on the right-hand si e of the diagram. It will be seen that the induction ends, at the end of the inward stroke of iston 4, and that compression of the air enc osed in the cylinder 13 and conduit 24 then proceeds until the opening 'of the scaven'gvports at I, I in the succeeding angle.

e cycle of the cylinder 14 is similarly shown by the dotted sinusoidal curve C, 14, opposite in phase to C, 5, together with the line V, 18which represents the phases of the cam 19 relatively to thel travel of the fuel-valve 18 as indicated at the right-hand side of the diagram. It lwill be seenA that products of induction of the fuel into the cylinder 14 takes place through the valve 15 during the stroke of the istoii 12 which begins at I I, compressiontlrough the valve' 16 into the reservoir 17 proceeding during the remaining half of the cvcle. At V V shortly before l the piston 5 reaches the end of its coinpression stioke the fuel valve 19 is opened by the cuni 18, and remains open until the end of the stroke at VI, the fuel being fed into the working cylinder 6 during the period V, VI, against the increasing pressure of the air in the cylinder. y

Returning to the action of the main pistons 4, `5 (as shown by the curvesCl, C5) it will be seen that they compress the working Huid to its minimum volume at the phase VII, slight-ly after the end of the stroke of the piston 5 and before that of the`piston 4. Ignition of the charge, by usual. means, as by a sparking plug P, is effected at, or about the phase of minimumV volume,

and the expansion or. power stroke proceeds i and 5 as the necessary operations of scavenging, fuel injection or the like may inA some cases be electedb auxiliary pistons attached to only some 'o saidv main pistons.

In the application of the invention to Diesel engines operating on liquid fuel, the cycle of operations and the arran ement of the parts will be similar to those a ove described, excepting that the piston 12 and cylinder 14 instead of compressing gaseous fuel, may be employed either tolcom ress air for the purpose of air-injection o :the fuel, or as a pump ,to deliver the liquid fuel directly into the working cylinder, through a fuelinjection valve replacinr and operating in the same way as the viilve 18. When two Vor more cylinders 14 in a multiple cylinder Diesel engine are employed as aircompressors, it will be convenient to arrange them in a .series as a multi-stage compressor.

In such an arrangement the cylinder effecting the rst stage of the compression will preferably take in air from the atmosphere through a cylinder ort 25 and valve port 26 in a rotary valve 2 similarly to the rotary valve 22, these parts bein indicated by dotted lines in Figure 1. Suc induction lois ias

of air will take place during the inward stroke of the piston 12, delivery of the compressed air occurring in the latter art of the return stroke when the piston of t e next compression stage (which 1s a piston in adrance of the first-stage piston in the engine cycle) uncovers admission ports similar to the por-ts 7. l

I clannz l. In a craukless engine of the type specilicd, the combination of a main shaft, a pair.

ot' plane-faced slant members mounted thereon with different phases of inclination one being slightly retarded from direct opposition to the other, a working cylinder, and two pistons in said cylinder each of which co-acts with one of said slant members.

2. In a crankless engine ofthe type specified, the combination of a main shaft, a pair ol plane-faced slant members mounted thereon in phases differing from precise opposition, a working cylinder having exhaust and scavenge ports, and two pistons eoacting severally with each of said slant mem-l bers and arranged in an alined pair reciprocable in the cylinder, one, piston of the said pair effecting the operation of exhaust by uncovering said exhaust ports, and the other piston effecting the operation of scaV-.

enge by uncovering said scavenge ports during a period shorter than and retarded with respect to the period of uncovering of said exhaust ports.

3. In a crankless engine, the combination with a main shaft, of a pair of slant members mounted thereon, with different phases of inclination, pistons co-acting with each of said slant members and arranged in alined pairs vfor reciprocatioi in opposed phases, a working cylinder common to said pistons in which the latter reciprocate and having valve ports controlled b said pistons., a pump cylinder for supp ying scavenging air communicating with the working ter forming an extension of one of the engine pistons.

4. 1u a crankless engine, the combination with a main sha-ft, of a pair of slant members n'iouuterl thereon with different phases of inclination, a working cylinder, pistons in the latter co-acting with each slant member, a fuel injecting pump adapted to communicate with said cylinder and including an auxiliary piston connected with one of the engine cylinders, and a fuel inlet valve in the latter operable by the main shaft.

5. In a crankless engine, the combination with a main shaft, of a pair of slant members mounted thereon with different phases of inclination, a working cylinder, pistons in the latter co-acting with each slant member, a fuel injecting pump adapted to communicate with said cylinder and including an auxiliary -piston connected with one of the engine cylinders. a fuel inlet valve in the latter operable by the main shaft, a

scavenging-air-pump communicating with the engine cylinder including an auxiliary piston`connectcd with one of the engine pistons. and an air valve operable by the main shaft for controlling'the supply of air to the air pump.

Dated this 14th day of August 1924.V

'ANTHONY G.l M. MICHELL. 

